Hope, Magic, And Despair
by Killerbee77
Summary: Being the new transfer student at Mitakihara Middle School isn't easy, even more so when you're from out of the country. Jessica Evans is a normal girl on the outside, but she has a secret that not even family knows, and she plans to keep it that way. But, plans don't always go the way they're suppose to, and her whole world starts to change when she meets a girl: Nagisa Momoe.
1. Prologue: The Beginning

Prologue: The Beginning

_Hope._

_What is hope?_

_Despair._

_What is despair?_

_Are they two sides of the same coin,_

_or totally different all together?_

_I want to find the answer,_

_that is why I fight._

Mondays were the worse, and that was one thing the young teen knew for certain. She hated Mondays like most people; it was so hard to get up in the morning, and the entire day seemed to drag on way slower then on any other day of the week.

But, regardless of how she felt, fourteen-year-old Jessica Evans had no say in the matter of getting up early, an hour after sun raise to be exact. If it was up to her, she would skip school all together and sleep all day, but that was one thing her mother wasn't having. Young Jessica's education was important, so if it meant her suffering through the terrible hell known to the world as 'Monday', then her mother would make her walk through it with no remorse.

"Jessie~! It's time to wake up!" Jessica groaned, and pulled her blue blanket over her head. The small fists pounding on her did nothing to move her from her spot, so the petite and rather adorable creature opted on using the next best thing. Jumping on the teen's bed until he got up, right next to her head, no less. "Wake up, Jessie, wake up!"

"Alright, I'm up." The dark skinned teenager uttered, tossing the blanket off of herself. Groaning, she rolled lazily onto the floor, and laid there for a moment, starring up at the ceiling. Jessica's bed was close to the floor, so it wasn't like she would hurt herself if she fell off it suddenly.

The teenager's little sister, a nine-year-old named Susanna, starred at her from off the side of the bed, her head tilted to the side slightly. "Um ...morning."

"Morning," Jessica replied.

Her little sister then smiled. "You should really get up, now." She said. "Mom says she doesn't want you being late on your first day at a new school. Oh, and breakfast is almost ready."

"Tell mom I'll be down in a minute."

"Okay~!" Susanna nodded. She then hopped off the bed, and over Jessica, almost scaring the teen into thinking she'd accidentally jump on her. But, luckily, she didn't ...this time. Susanna ran out the room, the pitter-patter of her bare feet fading down the hall as she went.

Jessica sat up, a small smile on her face. She was no longer tiered anymore, and after being woken up the way she had, who would be. "That little girl, can't even get mad at her." How Susanna could be so perky so early in the morning, was one of the things she had yet to figure out.

"You know, in the future, she might make a great magical girl." A voice spoke from her windowsill. Jessica tilted her head up and saw her contractor and friend. A small blue cat with a black line running along both of it's abnormally large ears, a bushy tail, and two beady red eyes.

Though she was happy to see the odd looking cat, what it had said rubbed her the wrong way.

"I told you before, I don't want her involved in this, Ruby," Jessica said, sitting up. "I want my sister to have a normal life. I don't want her to be like me."

The creature she called 'Ruby' nodded. "Understood. I guess one magical girl from your family is enough." The alien cat hopped off the window and landed next to her. "I can always find other girls to strike a deal with."

"As long as it's not Susanna, I could care less who you make deals with."

She got to her feet, and made her way out the bedroom towards the bathroom, the strange cat following a few steps behind her.

The hallway was clean, the brown wood floor boards almost seeming to sparkle from the sunlight coming through the hallway windows; it was to be expected, the house was new after all.

A new house. In a new city. In a new country. Jessica never once thought that she would one day be living in a country other then the United States. Thinking back, her life back in Philadelphia hadn't been all that bad at first. She had lived in a fairly good neighborhood compared to most of her friends, and her family was content, but she had wanted something better, something more then just a life on low income, having to scrape at the bottom of what little bank savings they had just to eat sometimes. They had struggled like any other family, and somehow always gotten through it.

Then one day here mom got laid off; everything seemed to domino effect from there. They ended up getting evicted from their apartment and had to move into a shelter, things went from bad to worse in a matter of months. Her mother was deep in depression, while at the same time trying to find a job. Susanna was getting bullied in school, her grades slipping from how good they used to be to barely passing, and she was stuck in the middle not knowing what to do.

Everything seemed so hopeless.

Then a miracle happened in the form of a tiny blue and black alien cat thing named, Rubey(though she usually called him 'Ruby').

He gave her a chance to save her family by granting her one wish: for her family to live a better life, a life where they wouldn't have to struggle and do nothing but hope for the best . Of course, nothing in this world comes free, that was one thing her mother had told her time and time again since she could understand right from wrong. In exchange for that one, and only wish, she was thrown into a life she was barely prepared for, having to fight witches, creatures who spread despair and hatred throughout the world.

Rubey had not only made her wish come true, he also gave her the power to fight witches, in the form of what he called a 'Soul Gem'. It was what all magical girls like herself drew their magic from. The cat had even explained to her before the wish that her soul was what made the gem, and she should never be more then one-hundred meters away from it. Jessica didn't really care much for the details. She made the wish anyway, even knowing what the cost was.

That had been a year and a half ago, almost.

At the moment, her soul gem rested around her wrist in the form of a silver bracelet with a light brownish green orb in the center. It had been quite some time since she had gone out hunting for grief seeds, and she knew she'd have to go witch hunting sooner or later to keep her soul gem pure.

_It shouldn't be that hard, though. I'm sure there are plenty of witches to go around. _She thought.

"As true as that may be," Rubey said, having heard her thoughts clearly. "There's a high possibility that you'll be hunting in someone's territory."

"Well, too bad for them, I live in this city now too." Jessica said, smugly. "If they don't want to share, then I guess fighting is the only real option left." Reaching the end of the hall, she pulled open the slid open door to the entrance room of the bathroom as she continued. "Besides, I'll be damned if I have to travel all the way to the next town over just to hunt witches."

Rubey shook his head, chuckling in amusement. "For someone always bragging about being the hero, you don't seem to have a problem choosing the violent scenario."

Jessica grabbed her toothbrush out the holder, spreading toothpaste over the bristles. "And for a creature claiming not to have any emotions, you sure react like you do." She retorted, turning on the sank, as she began brushing her teeth.

"It's not that I have emotions, per-say." The magic dealer said, leaping onto the bathroom's footrest, watching as the teen freshened herself up. "I just react the way you humans would in different situations. Doing so makes it a lot easier to talk to girls with the potential of becoming magical girls."

"So, you're pretty much acting."

"Yes, that's one way to put it."

_Guess that would explain why he laughed at Stefanie's corny jokes. _Jessica continued to wash her face. When she was done, she looked at herself in the mirror, turning her attention to her brownish, green hair, which should have been the very definition of bedhead. _Let's see, what style should I go for today? I wanna make a good first impression. _She took a minute or two to think about it, straightening her shoulder length locks with her hand, before she finally decided. "Well, Mom did always say my hair look good with my natural curls."

She waved her hand under one of her locks, and her haired glowed a light brown color before it curled itself with magic. Jessica looked over her self from different angles and smiled, turning to the alien cat near her. "So, how do I look?"

"Presentable," Rubey answered, simply.

"Wow, thanks a lot, Ruby," Jessica said rolling her eyes, her voice laced with sarcasm. "You sure do have a way of making a girl feel nice, don't you."

"I'm just stating what I see." Rubey tilted his head. "Isn't being presentable what you were going for, anyway?"

Jessica sighed. "Never mind." She walked out of the bathroom, and made her way back toward her bedroom to get dressed. Rubey paced up beside her. This would be the second time she wore her new school uniform; in her opinion the skirt was a too bit short for her liking, but that was nothing a good pair of tights couldn't fix. _And the last thing I want is for some perv to get a look at my panties because the wind suddenly decided to blow._

_**XxxxX**_

The sound of sizzling and the smell of breakfast was the first thing that greeted Jessica when she got down stairs. The house that her family had moved into was a little above average size to most people, but to her it was huge, having only lived in an apartment for most of her young life.

She crossed the, still fairly empty, living room and entered the kitchen. Her mother was standing over the stove, making what smelled like bacon, and her little sister was sitting at the table, sipping on a glass of orange juice.

The six-year-old was the first one to take notice of her. "Oh, wow, you look really pretty today, Jessica." She complemented.

Jessica smiled, taking the seat across from her. "Thanks, Sus, you look nice today, too. That uniform makes you look very cute."

"Thanks, Mama said the same thing~!"

"Well, I see someone trying to impress the boys." Jessica's mother, Rochelle, spoke. Half turning toward the teenager. "Trying to get a boyfriend on your first day, huh?" She teased.

Jessica gave a nervous laugh. "What …? No, not at all," she said, before sighing a little. "If anything, the boys would be more intimidated by my height then anything. I doubt I'll get a boyfriend in high school."

"Awe, come on now, don't say that." Rochelle said. "You know, there are some boys out there who find tall girls attractive."

"Yeah? If that's true, I've never met em'," the dark skinned girl replied, poring herself a glass of orange juice. "I was taller then most of the girls in my old school, and a few of the boys. Plus, from what I hear, Japanese people are a bit ...on the short side." She then groaned, another thought occurring to her. "God, I'm going to be a freakin' giant at school, aren't I. This sucks." _I hope I don't get any weird nick names, this time. Getting called a 'tree' was so annoying._

"Hey, I'll have you know that being a tall girl isn't a bad thing. Your grandmother was tall, and so was her mother, and they were both pretty popular with the guys." Rochelle said to her daughter. She finished up the last of the food, and brought over three plates of strawberry pancakes, bacon and eggs. "Just be yourself, make some friends, let people get to know you. It might be a bit hard at first, but everyone will warm up to you, eventually."

_Easy for her to say. _Jessica thought, starring down at the food that her mother had placed in front of her. It was one thing being a tall person. Being tall and a girl just made her stand out more back in her old school. Now they were in a totally different country, and most of the people here have probably never seen someone of her nationality before ...well, besides on television, maybe.

_If you ask me, I doubt people will care much after a week or so. _Rubey thought to her, from his spot on the counter, scratching behind his ear with one of his hind legs. _But, I could be wrong. You humans like to pay attention to even the smallest details on others different from you. It's been like that since the beginning of your history._

_As if I didn't know that already._ Jessica thought, as she began eating her food.

Breakfast had passed by pretty quietly, with the only one really talking being Susanna. Like always, her mom had outdone herself; she was a cook after all. So no surprise there.

Once breakfast was done, Jessica went and grabbed her bag from the living room, and made a few last checks on her appearance, before getting ready to leave out the door.

"Jess, make sure you call me if you go anywhere after school, okay?" Rochelle said from the kitchen entryway.

Jessica nodded, and opened the front door. "Sure. See you later."

"Be safe, hon."

The teen made her way out the house, closing the door behind her. The cool morning breeze blowing gently on her; the sun was shining and it seemed like it would be a pretty nice day. As she took a slow breath, to calm her nervousness, Rubey hopped on her right should, his body much lighter then it should have been.

"Well, here goes nothing."

"You'll do just fine, I'm sure. Just act as you always do," the alien cat said.

Jessica sighed. "Yeah ...okay, just be normal. Got it." And with that thought in mind, she started off towards Mitakihara train station, mentally preparing herself for whatever her first day of school might bring.

* * *

So, I know I've been gone for a while, but I'm not dead! I have just been busy with life, that, and bettering my writing skills as well as developing my writing style. So ...yeah, I will be updating a few of my other stories, and continuing this one. I'd really like some feed back on it, should I continue it or not?Also, this story takes place a year or so before the events of the series.

Until next time!

Peace~!


	2. Chapter 1: So It Begins, The First Day

Chapter 1: So It Begins, The First Day In A New School

The moment she walked into the train station, it seemed like she became the center of attention. Maybe she should have chosen another hair style, but regardless, things might have ended up being the same. Almost everyone seemed to be starring at her, some in amazement like she was so type of rare creature. There were even a few, no, a lot of girls and boys wearing the same uniform as her, glancing over and whispering things.

She couldn't quite catch what was being said, most of it being in Japanese, so she didn't know weather she should be offended or not.

From what she was told, most people in Mitakihara city could speak English to some degree. Even knowing that, Jessica still made it her mission to try learning Japanese as best she could; she didn't want to have to depend on some translator to talk for her. But it was going rather slowly, and all she really knew at the moment was the basic 'hello', 'goodbye', 'I'm sorry', and her favorite 'I don't speak good Japanese', among others.

Still, all the starring was starting to get to her.

_Am I really that interesting? They don't need to stare at me so much, Jeez! _Jessica thought. She did her best to keep her eyes on the ground, but couldn't help glancing up every so often. All the attention was as annoying as it was agitating.

_It can't be helped, you know. _Rubey thought to her, from her shoulder. _You're something new, out of the ordinary, you could say. I was expecting the outcome to be much worse, of course._

Jessica glanced over at the magical, alien cat. _Really ...how so?_

_They could be swarming you, asking tons of questions. _Rubey stated.

The dark skinned girl sighed, knowing that the contractor was probably right. _I guess ...but, all the same, this is still annoying!_

_Never said it wouldn't be, I simply stated a different situation. _Rubey thought. _You'll live, I can assure you. A little attention never hurt anyone._

Jessica frowned. _Sometimes, I really hate you, Ruby._

_I doubt that, you could never outright hate me. _Rubey thought, his ever present grin seeming to widen ever so slightly. _I'm too fluffy to hate._

_Oh, haha. You'd like to think that, wouldn't you. _Jessica replied back, feeling slightly amused by the statement.

Even not having any 'real' emotions, she found that Rubey could be quite comical in his retorts when he wanted to. There were a lot of things that she still didn't know about Rubey, like where he came from or how he ended up granting wishes for girls like her. And some things he simply refused to talk about. But, everyone had their secrets, so she never tried to force him to talk about anything he didn't want to.

If he brought something up suddenly that she didn't know before, it was usually because it was of some type of importance to her well being.

"Attention passengers: the next train for Mitakihara Middle School, Downtown, and Sagura Mall Plaza will be approaching momentary, please stand behind the yellow line." A calm woman's voice chimed over the intercom.

There was the blaring of a horn, and the train sped to a stop at the platform a few seconds later. Jessica followed the crowd as the train doors slid open, and got into the third car from the last. It was full, but thankfully it wasn't too packed to the point where people would be bumping up against her; unfortunately, all the seats were taken, so she had to stand and hold on to the rail.

There was a loud _bing _and the train doors slid closed once again, before it pulled off and sped away from the platform toward the next stop. Jessica could see most of Mitakihara from the window in front of her. The city was close to the ocean, and because she was facing the right direction, she could see how far the city spanned before ocean came into view.

_Well, if anything, at least this city has a nice view. _Rubey thought to her. _Seeing building after building gets boring after a while. __Not that your old town had that bad of a view, of course._

_Yeah, the view is nice. That doesn't mean I don't miss my old city, though. _Jessica replied.

Rubey gave a nod. _Understandable. __Homesickness is common during a sudden move, especially one as big as moving to another country. _The alien cat thought to her. _But, I have no doubt in my mind that you'll adopt to your new environment successfully. _

_Yeah. I just need to get used to it, that's all_. She thought in agreement.

"Hey, dude, look at that chick over there." A voice spoke suddenly from her left, she glanced over and saw two boys, one with light brown hair, and the other with raven black hair. They were probably a grade lower then her, huddled up next to each other, looking over in her direction as they talked, not even trying to be least bit quiet about it.

"...Damn, she is huge. I don't even think my dad's that tall." The black haired boy replied in awe.

The brown haired boy, snickered. "That's just because your dad is short as hell," he teased. "I bet your mom could step on him."

"Shut up, my dad's not that short," the black haired boy frowned, playfully smacking the other on the arm. "Um, isn't that our school uniform she's wearing, though?"

"Oh, you're right!"

"It would be our school that gets the freakishly tall chick. First the otaku, and now this."

As the two continued chatting, Jessica felt her eye twitch on it's own, a sign that she was getting severally annoyed. It was one thing to have people talk and laugh at you when you're not around, but if it was one thing she couldn't stand, it was when someone talked crap about her without even trying to hid it.

_I swear to God, if they keep talking, I'll kick both their ass! _She thought, her lips pressed in a thin line.

_You could do that, but I wouldn't recommend it. _Rubey said. He hopped off her shoulder and began walking along the skinny pole she held with an unnatural amount of balance. I _suggest you kindly ask them to stop. Good first impression, remember._

_Right ...right. I'd hate to come off as violent. _Jessica took a breath, and turned towards the two Mitakihara students, trying her best to put on a somewhat kind smile. Even though she felt like the complete opposite. "Um ...excuse me." They didn't seem to hear her over the sound of the train, so she talked a bit louder. "Excuse me, you two!" That got their attention pretty fast(and shut them up, thankfully), along with a few others in the train car. "Mind not talking about me like I'm not here, it's rude."

They glanced at each other, and after a moment, the black haired boy spoke. "Uh ...yeah, sorry about that," he apologized.

"Yeah, sorry. It's just that we've never met a girl as tall as you before, so," the brown haired boy added, with a nervous smile. " ...Yeah, sorry."

"It's no big deal. I just wanted you both to stop, that's all." She replied. The two gave a nod and turned their backs to her, and she went back to looking out the window. _I guess that wasn't so bad. At least they listened._

"We are now approaching Sakuza station, for Mitakihara Middle School, and Raising Sun Park. Please stand away from the doors." An automated woman's voice spoke, as the train pulled to a stop at the next station. Rubey leaped back onto Jessica's shoulder and she, along with all the other students, got out of the car once the doors slid open. As they walked, the same two boys were a few feet in front of Jessica again amongst the crowd, only this time they didn't notice her.

"That was freaky, man."

"I know, right, I thought she was gonna step on us, for reals."

"She probably could have," the brown haired boy uttered. "Tsuri-san was really scary back there."

"Tsuri-san …?"

"Yeah, cause, ya know, that's what she reminds me of. I mean, the skin and hair color."

"...Oh my God, you're right, she does look like that!"

_What the hell's a tsuri? _Jessica thought, eyebrows raised. She really had to catch up on her Japanese, she hated not knowing. _Ruby, what's a tsuri?_

Rubey turned his head to her. _If I told you, it would only make you angry._

"Just tell me, please," Jessica muttered.

Rubey tiredly shook his head at her. _If you really want to know, then fine. _He said, sighing. _A tsuri can be many things, but with the way they used it, it __could be a__ growth._

_A growth?_

_Or, _He continued._ it can also be a tree. _

"A tree ...really," Jessica frowned, her free hand that wasn't holding her bag balling up into a fist at her side. "I just got here, and they're already calling me a freakin' tree." The tall teen couldn't help but think back to all the times she had been teased in her old school. Out of all the names she had ever been called, there were two that annoyed her the most: Tree Girl and Oak Tree. Those two names reminded her of constant poking and teasing she had gone through in her younger years.

_Maybe, you should take a breath. Count to ten. _Rubey said. _I'll count with you if you want._

"N-no, I'm good. I won't do anything rash-."

The black haired boy laughed out. "-A tall-ass tree, that's freakin' hilarious~!"

The other boy joined in the laughter with him. "If she had pink hair, we could call her 'Sakura'!"

Jessica's eye twitch. _That's it, I'm soo gonna kick there ass! _She thought. Rubey shook his head at her again in disapproval, as the teen marched up to the two boys. He knew that this was going to happen, and trying to stop her at this point was useless.

_I warned you, Jessica._

"Shut it, Ruby," Jessica uttered. She walked up just behind the two boys, who were still in the middle of laughing, and placed her hand on the black haired student's shoulder. "So, what's so funny, you two?"

The two turned to her with a surprised yelp, but the black haired boy was the first one to say anything. "Uh ...n-nothing."

"Really, so I _don't _look like a tree?" Jessica said with a deep frown, causing them both to pale.

"Awe, crap."

"Dude, that was all you!"

"Me, you're the one who called her a tree in the first place!"

"But, you still laughed about it-."

"Five seconds," she uttered. The two looked at her confused, as she continued. "You've got five seconds to run, or I'll kick both your asses from here to the school."

"Look, we're really sorry-."

"One."

"We didn't mean anything by it. Really."

"Two ...three ...four."

The black haired boy was the first one to take off running, his friend following not even a moment later. Seeing how fast they were, Jessica had a feeling they were both on the track team. Either that, or they were just that scared. "Yeah, you both had better run!" She shouted, waving her fist, watching them get smaller and smaller in the distance. "...Assholes." It was at that moment, that she noticed some of the other students had stopped walking to watch the whole thing play out. She flushed a little, and continued on walking. "So much for a good first impression. They must think I'm some type of bully or something."

_Or, they could just think it's your time of the month. _Rubey thought. _You're easily angered then, too._

"Shut it, Ruby. I was talking to myself, not you."

_**XxxxX**_

The rest of the walk lead her pass a small river that flowed from the direction of the school, the water was surprisingly clear, compared to the rivers she was used to seeing. Many of the students had already gone ahead of her, and the ones still around didn't come to close to her.

_Probably afraid I'll lash out at them. _She thought, sighing. She still had about ten minutes before the bell rang, thus signaling that she was late; Jessica was close enough to make it to the school building within that time, so there was really no need to rush. "So, Ruby," Jessica began, quiet enough so that only Rubey could hear her. "How have the girls been back in good ol' brotherly love city?" She asked, as she walked by a few students, who moved slightly away from her. Rubey was relaxing on her shoulder, seemingly enjoying the sunlight like any normal cat would, if he had been anything normal, anyway.

The abnormal black and blue cat scratched behind his ear with one of his hind-leg, letting out a cute 'kyu' sound before answering. "Same as always. Hunting witches, going to school, fighting against rival magical girl groups, the usual stuff." Rubey said. "They miss you a lot, or at least Aliyah does. She the only one who's actually outright said it. But I'm pretty sure the rest of them do, too."

"So their doing fine. That's good," Jessica said, with a sighing. "To tell the truth I thought they would be mad at me for just moving away out of nowhere. I mean, we were a squid, and I can't even be there to help them keep the witch population down, not to mention all the other magical girls who constantly want to take over."

"It can't be helped." Rubey said, tilting his head to her. "Philadelphia's a hot spot for witches, and with all the murders and violence happening there on a daily basis, that hatred and grief builds up. It's no wonder witches appear there so much. But, that is what makes it a great hunting grounds for other magical girls."

"Yeah, I know that. You said it before, magical girls show up where ever the witches are," Jessica said, looking down at her soul gem bracelet. "Witches can be so annoying."

"And, as you know, your home city is one of the top ten witch infested places in the States," Rubey replied, sounding a bit too happy.

"You make it seem like I should be proud of that," the green haired teen, muttered.

"That's because you should be," the blue cat said. "The more witches there are, the higher the chance is that you'll find a grief seed."

"But me and the girls had a hard enough time keeping up with the witches that kept popping up, and that was with the five of us. Now that I'm here things are only going to get even harder for the others."

"They were doing just fine last I checked," Rubey said. "Besides, there are other girls who have the qualifications to become magical girls; one such girl should be making a contract with me any day, now. So no need to worry, the group will have a new member very soon." He paused for a moment. "If they accept her into their ranks, anyway."

Jessica nodded. In a way, Rubey made it sound like she was being replaced. But, she was pretty sure that was just her homesickness talking; she missed all her friends dearly, and not being able to be there and help them fight witches made her worried. "This other girl, how strong do you think she'll be if she makes a contract?" The dark skinned teen asked.

Rubey put a paw to his chin in thought. "Well, it's hard to say. She has the potential to be at least average just starting out, even more so with training. But it really depends on the wish she makes that will make her soul gem shine." He answered, tilting his head back to her. "Is there anything else you'd like to know, Jessica?"

Jessica shook her head. "No, that's all I really wanted to know."

"Great, I should get going, then."

The magical cat turn and leaped off her shoulder, before she even had a chance register it. "W-wait," the teenager spun around, but by that time, Rubey was already gone. Just vanished into thin air. She groaned. "...Ruby."

_Don't worry, I'll be back soon. I still have other charges to keep up on, after all. _Rubey thought to her before going completely silent.

Jessica couldn't help but sigh, she had been hoping that Rubey would spend the day with her. _Looks like I'm on my own, for now. _She thought as she began to walking again. There was sound of laughter, then someone bumped into her, almost making her drop her bag. She turned around to see who it was, and found herself starring down at a salmon haired girl.

"Oh ...I-I'm sorry," the girl politely said, bowing to her.

Jessica waved her free hand in a dismissive manner. "It was an accident. No harm done, so don't worry about it." She said, with a smile. The girl nodded and was about to say something else, when someone called out from ahead of them.

"Madoka, come on, before we end up being late, again!"

"Coming! ...Um, excuse me," the girl ran past Jessica. Turning, she gave one last bow, before she ran off toward two other girls; one with curly, brownish green looking hair, and the one next to her with short blue hair.

"Pink hair, huh. You don't see many of those in America." Jessica uttered to herself, tossing her bag over her shoulder as she moved on. At least one person she met didn't seem scared or intimidated by her appearance. Hopefully she'd meet more people like that, even if it was just a few.

_**XxxxX**_

She had expected the school to be big, but she never expect this. _You have got to be kidding me. _Jessica shaded her eyes with the back of her hand, as she starred up at the stature in front of her. It was all glass. Almost the entire school was made out of glass. She had to admit that, yes, it was a pretty sight. But along with thinking that, the young, destructive five-year-old inside wondered if the whole thing would come crashing down if she through a nice sized rock at it.

Not that she wanted to hurt anyone, of course, that was the last thing she wanted.

"Seriously, is this even safe?" Sighing, Jessica shook her head and made her way through the front doors; who's ever bright idea it was to build a place made to teach children out of almost seventy percent glass, had better have a check ready, because it was a law suit waiting to happen. _Really, Mom, out of all the places to send me._

When Jessica got inside the building. There was a large lobby area, and in it were rows of cubby-holes for holding shoes. Her mom had told her about this, that schools in Japan required you to change your 'outdoor shoes' with the indoor shoes' they supplied for you, or expected you to buy.

The dark skinned teen walked through the different rows of cubbies, looking up and down each one, until she found the one with her name written above it. She took out the pair of shoes sitting in them and looked them over; they were a pair of brown, slip in shoes with a rubber grip at the bottom. It was kind of strange to her to have to change shoes in school, rather then just walking in with whatever ones you had on, but this was a different country with a different culture, so she didn't mind it.

And in a way, it made scene. If someone were to step in mud or something, at least they'd have a change of shoes instead of tracking it through the building.

The school had assigned her these shoes after all, since she didn't have a pair to bring. Of course, this also raised the question as to how the school even knew her school size to begin with. _Mom must have told them at some point, when she was enrolling me. _She thought, as she bent down and switched out of her blue sneakers into her brown 'indoor' shoes. _Not that it really matters. Free shoes are free shoes._

Once she was finished, and her sneakers were put away in her assigned cubby, the first thing she did was head to the main office. At that moment, the school bell chime played loudly, signaling the start of class.

The principle was a rather nice woman, and had a very experienced air about her, even though she looked younger then Jessica expected she'd be. Nice, smart, and well spoken in both Japanese and English. Jessica could barely tell she had an accent. The woman gave her her class schedule, and a few other papers for her mother, then sent her on her way to homeroom.

Walking through the halls was uncomfortable, to say the least. Jessica thought that just the outside of the school had been made out of whatever glass they used, but she had been wrong, the inside was made out of glass too. _Someone really went overboard when they designed this place. _

The eyes of all the students in the other classrooms followed her as she passed. The walls that separated them being made of glass, as well. _Who's smart idea was this? The outside being made from glass, I can handle, but this ...come on! _Jessica sighed, and looked at the paper in her hand. Her classroom was class 1-3, on the forth floor. She made her way up the flight or stairs to the next floor, and kept her eyes on the different class numbers as she passed, until she spotted the one she was suppose to be in.

There was no time to take a breath, or even calm her heart. Meeting new people had always made Jessica kinda nervous, and she did her best not to show it by putting on the best smile she could manage. _Just get it over with, you'll be fine. _She told herself.

The teenager walked in through the open classroom door, her classmates had already seen her standing outside the doorway thanks to the see through walls, so there was really no use in being out in the hallway.

"Ah~ hello there," the man at the front of the class greeted her with a smile. "You must be the new student, right? I was just about to tell the class."

"Um ...hi ...sorry if I'm late, I had to stop by the office before coming here."

"That's just fine. If you have a valid excuse, then the lateness won't be held against you." He replied. "I'm Tashima Hiroki, but you can call me Tashima-sensei, or just teacher. Whichever is easier for you." Jessica shyly nodded.

Her homeroom teacher looked young, probably in his early twenties, with dark gray hair and eyes of a similar shade. He wore glasses, and had on a white lab coat over his button-up white shirt and black work pants.

The young man turned to the class, an excited and pumped expression on his face. "Anyway, as I was saying, today we're getting a new student~! So be sure to make her feel welcome, okay?"

"Hai, sensei!"

He then turned back her. "You can go on and introduce yourself, if you want. It doesn't have to be a lot, just your name is fine," the teacher said. "You don't have to share your life story. Though, it would be the first time a student has come pretty close to that."

"Uh ...O-okay." Jessica raised an eyebrow at him, before turning to her classmates, and they starred right back at her. It had been some time since she had felt so shy around other people, and she hated being in the spot light when she wasn't prepared. "Uh ...my name is Jessica Evans, or Evans Jessica. Last name's come first here ...anyway, I'm fifteen-years-old, and I moved here from America. I don't know much Japanese. Actually, I barely know any at all, so I hope you all help me with learning the customs and things here ...and, um, that's about it, I guess."

No one in the class said anything, not even an applause; not that she was expecting one.

Had they even understood her at all? She was pretty sure they knew English well enough, if those two younger boys from earlier was anything to go off of.

"Evans, your spot is the third desk in the middle, please take your seat so that we can continue." The teacher said.

Jessica gave a nod and walked to her seat. She put her bag on the back of the chair like she had seen some of the other students doing, then sat down. She moved around a bit to get comfortable, only to find that her knees were pressed up against the bottom of the desk. _Oh, you have got to be kidding!_

Tashima-sensei had already began talking, and the last thing she wanted to do was interrupt the class when she just sat down, but there was no way she would be able to focus if her legs were scrunched up like this. So, giving a silent, annoyed groan, she raised her hand.

"Yes, do you need something, Evans?" The teacher addressed her.

"Um ...I really don't mean to interrupt your class, sir, but-." _God, this is embarrassing! _Jessica couldn't help but be thankful that her brown skin tone helped hide most of her blush. "The desk is sorta small for my legs. Is there some way I can get a bigger seat?"

Hiroki-sensei smiled. "I don't think you'll be needing a new one," he said, with a chuckle. "The good thing about these desks is that they are adjustable. On the bottom left side of the desk should be a button, just press that and you should be okay."

Jessica did just as he said, and the desk elevated little by little until she had all the leg room she wanted. She looked back up at the teacher and smiled. "Thank you."

"No problem, it's what I'm here for." He turned his attention from just her to the entire class. "As I was saying, this year we're trying out something new, so you may notice that the time for your gym classes have changed a bit. And also-."

As the teacher continued on with the morning announcement, Jessica sighed. It was a good thing that she didn't have to change seats, and the was very nice, much nicer then the teacher she had at her old school.

_Things might not be so bad. Maybe I might even like it here. _Jessica thought, leaning her chin in her hand.

* * *

That ends the first chapter. I wrote way more then I expected to, buy whatever, who doesn't love longer chapters. Anyway, I try and update every week, and the story may have about twelve or thirteen chapters. I reason being, I'm basing it off the number of episodes in the anime, and in the mangas. As always, please point out any mistakes, and show that comment box some love~!

Peace~!


	3. Chapter 2: Name That Witch

Chapter 2: Name That Witch

Once classes had officially started, time just seemed to fly by rather then slow down like in her previous school. At this point in the day, just before eleven o' clock, Jessica would have had her head on her desk, half sleep, and bored out of her mind. But, if she could say anything, it's that she was actually excited to be in class; even if the class she was currently in was one of her least favorites(math).

Maybe it was the new atmosphere. That, and her teacher was quite energetic, the way he taught was somewhat silly, but it sure did it's job. It grabbed the attention of the students, and didn't let go until the very end of class.

_I would call this guy a nut, but I'd rather have him then that old lady, Mrs. Arvoch. _The teenager thought, as she watched the young teacher wrote out the answer to a pretty complicated math problem on the board. _Still hate math, though._

"And so class, as you can see, if you take the seven and multiply that by two," Tashima-sensei said, finishing up the last problem of the class. "You get the answer for X." He turned to the class, with a smile on his face. "Any questions?" A boy with light red hair raised his hand. "Yes, Uza-kun?"

Uza, his given name being Takashi, spoke in a slightly confused tone. "Um, I might need some help remembering all those steps, Sensei. You were talking too fast for me to write it all down." He said.

Tashima-sensei sighed. "Looks like I was too much in the zone today. Does anyone else need what I just explained written down?" About half the class raised their hands, causing the teacher to sigh again. "Alright. Well, I guess I could write it down on some paper and copy it. I'll have to slow down next time." he uttered, before he pointed at the class with a very stern look. "But, I expect you all to study it, understand?"

All the students, but Jessica, answered in a formal. "_Hai, sensei_."

"Awesome. It's almost time for lunch, so while I go get the papers, take some time to get to know your classmates." After picking up his binder and math book, Tashima strolled out the class, leaving the students to themselves. The second he stepped out, the students began chatting to each other, quite loudly, and Jessica went from being alone to having a bunch of girls surrounding her desk in, what seemed like, a few seconds.

"Um ...hello," the dark skinned teen greeted, awkwardly.

A blacked haired girl was the first one to speak. "Hi, I'm Ayoki Risa, but you can call me, Risa if you want." The girl said, beaming. "By the way, I love your hair, did you do it yourself?"

"Actually, yeah, I did," Jessica answered, smiling shyly.

"It's really cute," another girl added. "It's, like, bushy and curly at the same time."

"So, when did you move to Japan?" A girl asked, suddenly.

"What was America like?"

"Do you have a favorite music group?"

"We should totally eat together sometime~!"

Within moments, Jessica was getting bombarded by questions at all angles by the girls around her desk. Every time she would answer one question, another one took it's place, and it was becoming extremely difficult to keep up.

"How do you like Japan so far?"

"Well, I haven't been here long, so I-."

"Do you like track?" The girl who introduced herself as Risa asked.

Jessica nodded. "Y-yeah, I've done track before, at my old school a few years ago." She answered.

"Then you should totally join the school track club," Risa replied. "You have such long legs, and your seem pretty athletic."

"I think she should join the swim team. It would be way better for her." A dark brown haired girl said.

"I don't think so. Maybe the girls' basketball club would be better," another girl suggested to the group, before turning to Jessica. "Do you know how to play basketball, Jessica-chan? I hear it's a big thing over in America."

"Um ...a little, but I not very good at it." Jessica said, with a shrug. "I've never liked it much, anyway. To tell the truth, it sorta annoys me."

"How come?" Risa asked.

"Well, back at home people used to always tell me consistently that I should play basketball. It was either 'oh, you're so tall, you should be playing ball.' Or 'Put that height to use and join a team.'" The dark skinned teen said. She let out a sigh, then muttered. "I guess hearing it so many times, it made me feel like that was the _only _thing I was meant to do when I got older. So, I started hating the sport all together."

The girl who suggested it gave a disheartened expression. "Oh ..._gomen_, I didn't mean to bring it up. I just thought, you know, that you would've liked the club I'm in." She uttered, sadly. "If I had known, I wouldn't have said anything about it. Sorry about that."

"It's no biggie, really. I mean, I don't hate basketball fully." Jessica waved dismissively, smiling at the girl. "I just don't like playing it as much as I used to, that's all."

There was a sudden silence around the table, which Risa was kind enough to break before it turned awkward. "Anyway, how about we all eat lunch together, huh girls?" She said, excitedly, bring the energy back to the table. "I know this great spot by the track field, it'll be like our little picnic to welcome Jessica-chan to our school~."

"Wow, that is a great idea!"

"Yeah, why didn't I think of that?"

"You don't mind eating with us, right, Jessica?" One of the girls asked.

Jessica shook her head. "No, not at all. It's way better then eating alone, that's was my original plan." After saying that, something very important occurred to her. "Actually, do you guys know where I can buy lunch from? I brought enough money."

"Wait, you didn't bring your lunch?" Risa asked, surprised.

"Um ...no," Jessica answered, an eyebrow raised. "Doesn't the school sell lunches here?"

"They do, but there's not much to buy, it's mostly bread." The girl from the basketball club said. "Curry bread, melon bread, that sort of thing. If you want good food, you usually have to bring your own from home."

Jessica's mouth dropped a bit. "So ...I have to eat bread for lunch today?"

"Yeah. That, or you could go to the convenience store." Risa said. "There's one close by, and the teachers allow the older students to leave the grounds to get lunch if we don't bring our own."

"Oh, alright, cool," Jessica said. She was happy she wouldn't have to eat bread for lunch, at least. The thing was that even if she did want to go to the convenience store, she had no idea where it was, or what route to take. _Or even how much things cost, I still not used to Japanese currency. _"Is there anyway one of you could show me where the store is? Ya know, so I won't get lost."

"We would, but we don't have to." Risa then pointed to another spot in the classroom; Jessica turned and followed the direction her finger was pointing in, and saw a girl with violet hair and big rimmed glasses, reading a book by herself at her desk in the very corner of the classroom. "That girl over there, she goes to the convenience store almost everyday to get lunch, I doubt she'd have a problem if you asked to go with her. Though, I've got to warn you, she's a total weirdo."

"Weird how, exactly?" Jessica asked. She had plenty of weird friends, so she was pretty sure there wasn't a type of weird she hadn't seen yet. Hell, if anything, she could be considered weird herself, and that had nothing to do with being a magical girl.

A bright, red haired girl answered her question. "Well, she's always quiet, and she barely talks. Like, at all. I mean, we've tried to be friendly and talk to her on her first day here. But she just got sorta ...awkward and silent." She said. "All she does during breaks is sit there, reading mangas and whatever other books she has with her."

"And if you ask me, there's something wrong with her head. She has fallen more times during gym then any other student I've seen." Risa added.

Jessica laughed a bit, turning back to the group. "Guys, just because she quiet, and a little bit accident prone doesn't make her weird." She replied, as she stood up from her seat, straightening the wrinkles out her skirt. "What's her name, anyway?"

"Uh ...it's Osaka Mion, I think," the girl from the basketball club, responded.

Jessica gave a nod, and started walking toward the quiet girl. She was pretty sure the girl wasn't as bad as the group was making her out to be, and she had a pretty good feeling that there was more to her then what they told her, there always was. Besides, she'd be able to make a new friend. _Though, I still have to wonder if that group of girls is even friend material. _She thought. _Mom did always say if you can't make friends with good people, you're better off alone. _Jessica stopped right at the side of the violet haired girl's desk, here presence going unnoticed as the girl continued to read. She seemed like she was really into the book.

_Let's see, how do I start this? _"Um ...Osaka-san." The girl turned, starring at her midsection, before quickly looking up at her face. "That is your name, right?"

"Y-yes," Mion answered. Her voice was soft, almost childlike, and it was easy to see that she was nervous.

"Oh ...well, you see, I didn't bring anything with me for lunch. So I was wondering if it was okay for me to tag along with you to the store, just for today." The tall teenager said; Mion gave her thoughtful look, considering it, then nodded. "Great~ it's nice to meet you, by the way." Mion gave her another nod, and went back to reading her book.

It was only about four minutes until the lunch bell, so Jessica decided to try and make conversation with the girl. "So, that must be a really good book your reading?"

Mion glanced over at her for just a moment, then set her attention back on her book. "Uh-huh." She uttered with a nod.

"I see. Do you have a favorite character?"

"Uh-huh."

"Um ...what's it about?"

"S-stuff."

_Does this girl only give one word answers. _Jessica couldn't help but think to herself. The shy girl didn't seem like she was trying to purposely be rude to her. That, didn't make her feel any less ignored, though. _Maybe she just has a hard time communicating with others._

The school's automated bell chime rung a few minutes later. Saving her page with a torn piece of scrap paper, Mion put the book in her bag and got up from her desk. As she walked past her, Jessica was able to see exactly how short the girl was. She only came up to maybe an inch above her elbow, but that extra inch might be from her wearing shoes. _She like a doll, almost. And that skirt is a bit long on her. Not that that's a bad thing.  
_

Jessica followed Mion out the classroom doorway, noticing the small glances that the girl was sending her; the students from other rooms were watching as they walked by their classes. She could try to make friends with the shy girl, find a way to break her out of her shell. _It can't be that hard to do._

Of course, all of that was better thought than done.

_**XxxxX**_

Osaka Mion had always been the type none of the other kids wanted to hangout with. She wasn't very talkative, and preferred to be alone rather than in the company of strangers, even if those said 'strangers' were her age.

It's not that she wanted to be like that. The short, violet haired teen, would've love nothing more to be more out going. Make friends with her classmates, and talk about different things like boys and trends.

But, she just couldn't help it. As much as she wanted to, Mion just couldn't handle communicating with other people for too long; it made her nervous, and once she got nervous, she clammed up, and things turned awkward.

She used to be much worse as a child, her bad stuttering being the thing that got her teased the most during elementary school. And her bad coordination didn't make things any better. Mion was a very accident prone girl, and though she had gotten better at it over the years thanks to her therapist, Akio-sensei, she still had a tendency to fall and hurt herself at the most unexpected times.

Socially awkward, accident prone, and didn't do well in crowded places. She hated it. She was just the type of person no one wanted to hangout with, much less, try and get to know.

But, if there was one thing she could take pride in, it was that she was very good at remembering things and solving puzzles. Her grades were some of the best in her class, and math came easy to her, even the much harder ones with all the weird symbols. She didn't know why she understood it so well, her mind just calculated numbers much better then actual words.

Akio-sensei was one of the only people, besides her mother, that she could call her friend. He had told her once that kids like her were usually very bright, and went on to make great things of themselves. But, even hearing that, Mion wanted to be normal like the other girls in her class. And right now she had a chance to make friends with the new student in her class, before others started telling her how _weird _she was.

_Just try and start small, ask questions, and find out what you both have in common. _That was what her therapist had told her, it was one of the basic things in starting a conversation. Mion and the new girl had been walking for the past ten minutes together; they took the path she usually took to the convenience store, a walk through the small park of filled with cherry blossom trees, that didn't have many people around at this time of day. The taller girl was right next to her, just a few steps away. _This is my chance! I can finally make a friend in school, all I have to do is talk. That's all!_

"_A-ano_...?"

"Yes?" The taller girl glanced at her.

Mion swallowed nervously, and shook her head.

No matter how many times she tried, the words never seemed to form. Mion would glance over when she thought of something good to say, or a question to ask, but she could never get herself to speak because she was too nervous. She sighed, and slowed her walking pace, letting the dark skinned girl move ahead of her.

_This is stupid. I can't even talk right, why do I have to be so dumb. _She thought, sadly to herself.

"_**Yes, why live when you can even make a single friend.**__"_

_I can't make a single friend, not one._

"_**Wouldn't it be better to just, disappear? **__**To stop being such a burden on everyone?**_" Mion paused in mid-step, her dark brown eyes dulling as a black mark appeared on her shoulder. Her body felt weird, like she was asleep, but at the same time fully awake. _"__**Don't you want to be like the other girls? I can be your friend if you want.**__"_

_Be friends ...with me? _The violet haired girl thought to the voice.

"_**That's right, all you have to do is come to me.**__"_ She felt her body move on her own, and she began to walk off the path into the trees, the pink petals dancing around her as she followed the sweet, soft voice. _"__**That's it. Just a little farther. You don't have to worry about anything, anymore. I'll help you find true peace.**__"_

_I-I'd like that. I'd like that a lot. _Mion's eyes closed as she continued to follow the voice. It was like a sirens song, whispering sweet words to her. Words that were nothing more then lies of false promise.

_**XxxxX**_

Jessica had stopped suddenly the moment she felt it, her bracelet gem glowing faintly. A cold energy filled with with malicious intent, mixed in with sadness and dread, the signature presence of a witch. It was a pretty strong one, probably a familiar turned witch that was never killed. But even a familiar witch was dangerous. _Why am I just sensing it now, __though__ ...unless. _

"Osaka-." She turned to see if the girl was she was walking with was still behind her, only to find her missing. _Shit, did she get loured away? __No wonder I didn't feel anything until now. Damn it! __I'm not letting someone die on my watch! _Turning her bracelet into it's egg shaped form, Jessica began running in the direction that made her soul gem give off the brightest glow.

She went through the bushes and passed by lots of trees, most of which were cherry blossoms. Her gem pulsing strongly in her palm, until it stopped when she got to the top of a small hill; the teen had made it just in time to see Mion's upper body sink into the ground as if it were made out of water. "Shit. Mion!" Jessica ran toward the girl, her arm outstretched to try and pull her out of the witch's grasp, but by the time she even got close enough to do so, the girl's head had already sunken into the ground completely.

Jessica groaned. "Come on! God, this is happening at the worse time!"

The entrance to the witch's labyrinth was right in front of her, a large black symbol with the shadowy figure of a girl in the middle of it etched in the grass. The tall teenager held her glowing soul gem over it, and the ground rippled before a portal opened up.

_We've got only a half hour until lunch ends. I need to kill it by then. _She didn't have much choice, it was her job to kill witches, and she was in need of a grief seed anyway. Still, Jessica would rather be doing this after school, so she wouldn't feel so rushed. _Whatever, no time to bitch over it, I need to get Mion. _She step forward and hopped into the portal without hesitation. The world around her twisted and bended, until she found herself in a long, spiraling hallway.

Jessica wasted no time speeding down the hall. Everything was consistently changing, first she was on the red rug of the corridor, then she was on the wall, then the ceiling. A witch's labyrinth never made sense. That is what made it so dangerous. It was a realm that didn't follow the laws of reality in the slightest. _At least this place has gravity, floating __w__as never __my __thing. _She made it to a purple door at the end of the hall, thankful not to run into any familiars; she grabbed the bar handle, and pulled open the door, being met my a warm breeze.

Inside was a wide open room, with extra large furniture. To her it seemed like it was a child's playroom, if the child were a giant.

The steps in front of her were made from huge wooden, letter blocks. When put together, they spelled out 'Tea Time' on the facing up squares. She stepped down each block, being sure to keep an eye out for anything hostile; things seemed too calm, and she had yet to see a single familiar. As she hopped off the last block, there was a loud slam. Jessica turned around to find that the block stairs, along with the door, had disappeared, leaving nothing but a red painted wall.

_No turning back now. _Jessica focused on the task at hand, searching for Mion. Checking near house sized toys and game boards, it didn't take long for her to find the shy girl. After she had passed an area covered messily with numerous stuffed animals, the brownish green haired teen found her unconscious on a circular table, the only normal sized table she had seen in this place.

Mion was surrounded by familiars, their appearance that of cutout paper figures of nicely dressed people wearing animal masks. All of them banging on the table, chanting the same thing, in an eery voice that barely sounded human.

"_**Tea time! Tea time! Tea time! Tea time!**"_

One of the familiars had a butcher knife in his hand, and raised it over his head, ready to bring it down on the sleeping girl. _Oh, shit! _Jessica went into action without even thinking about it, jumping at the familiar, her palm pointed toward the knife wielding creature as her school uniform glowed bright green and transformed into her magical girl outfit in just a matter of moments.

"Stop right there!" A ball of black lightening bolt shot from her outstretched hand, striking the familiar in the chest, sending it flying into one of the over sized toys. The rest turned just in time to be met with either a kick to the face, or a lightening strike to the chest, making them all dissipate into nothing.

Jessica's floated in the air over the table for a moment, before lowering herself to the ground. Her long, black scarf fluttered through the air over her left shoulder, her upper body covered with light green armor, that had a black spandex top under it, showing the outline of her midsection, tucked into a pair of loose fitting camo pants. black gloves covered her hands, and her legs were covered with black shin guards and below them, black, short heeled boots.

Seeing that no reinforcements were coming, as of yet. She turned her attention to the sleeping Mion, grabbing her shoulders and gently shook her. "Osaka-san, hey, get up!"

"Tea ...time," the shy girl uttered, her dull eyes partly open.

Jessica sighed, knowing that she was already deep in a witch's kiss. Of course, she had been prepared for that. "Sorry, this might sting a bit." Holding out her index finger, she focused her magic at the tip, and touched the girl on the forehead, a small shock passing between the two.

_**XxxxX**_

At first, Mion felt like she sleeping in a very warm embrace, her mind clear of any thought or feeling. Then came another warmth, the warmth of static shock.

Mion's fingers twitched, before she sprung up into a sitting position, looking frantically around, her vision temporary blurred. "Huh ...w-what happened, w-where am I?" She uttered, sleepily, suddenly taking notice in the pain on her forehead. "And w-why does m-my head hurt?"

"Sorry, Osaka-san. But it was the only way to wake you up."

Mion rubbed her eyes as he vision began to clear, and looked over to see the new student. Not dressed in her uniform, but rather an odd looking outfit. _Is that some type of cosplay? _The shy girl wondered. Her head still felt light and fuzzy, but she could think clearer then she had a moment ago. She went to get off whatever she was sitting on, only for Jessica to stop her.

"Whoa, now wait a second. Slow down." The custom clad girl said, holding her shoulder. "You look like you'll fall over if you try to get up, just relax for a minute. How do you feel?"

"T-tired," Mion uttered.

Jessica nodded. "I guess that's to be expected. You were just under a witches kiss."

_Witches kiss? _"Um ...w-where are we," Mion asked, glancing up at the sky above the large room. "And what i-is this p-place?"

"Somewhere you don't want to be." Jessica replied, putting a hand on her hip, giving the shy girl a sassy expression. "You, Miss Mion, have just stumbled into one of the worlds most jacked-up secrets: a witches labyrinth."

"A witch …?" The first image that came to Mion's mind was a green skinned women with a point nose, flying on a broom. "B-but witches a-aren't real."

"Probably not the ones you're thinking of, because trust me, I'd rather have those then the real deal any day. You see a real witch is much worse by com-."

Jessica's explanation was cut short when the room suddenly started to tremble, like a low earthquake. Cups and plates on the table tipped over, shattering on the floor, and some of the over sized building toys and furniture collapsed. The malicious energy became much stronger, the blue sky overhead turning blood red, and a grinning, clown faced moon appeared pushing though the clouds.

A chill went down Mion's spine as she started shaking, and it had nothing to do with the earthquake. "W-w-w-what's going on?" She asked.

"The witch is about to show itself." The taller girl answered, looking up at the moon in the sky. "About damn time, too."

_**10, 9, 8, 7-**_

An old, black and white film countdown began. The clown faced moon opened it's mouth, letting hundreds of paper bodies spill out like a rush of water; it was an army of familiars similar to the ones Jessica had destroyed moments ago. All of them holding some type of weapon, from knives to pitchforks.

_**6, 5, 4, 3-**_

The paper-like creatures fell into a heap on the ground, then began piling up into a living tower, until all of them fit together like puzzle pieces. Once the flow of familiars stopped, the tower reaching halfway to the moon, pulsing and swaying. A masked creature began to descend from the moon's mouth, four purple bat wings erecting from it's back, with abnormally long, boney arms and legs.

_**2-1-0**_

The mask crumbled away, reviving the pale face of a grinning girl, her eyes nothing but deep black voids, and her red sundress torn at the hems. She sat on top of the tower, her legs dangling and kicking freely like a child; a name plate appeared at the center of the tower, in a language neither of the two could read:

_**~Rosemude Talora~**_

"T-that thing's, a w-witch?"

"Yeah. Pretty scary, huh."

Mion couldn't help the fear that dug into her chest. She was not a brave person, and had never even watched a scary movies by herself; for her to suddenly be in the presence of something so horrifying. _That thing was the voice I heard ...there's no way. _The witch must have felt her fear, because the grin on it's face widened, showing rows of razor sharp teeth, the dark pits of it's eye sockets seeming to stare into her soul. The petite girl broke into a cold sweat, feeling short of breath, like a cold hand was squeezing her heart. _I can__'t __breathe!_ _I'm gonna die ...that thing is gonna kill me-!_

"Mion!" Mion jumped, and turned her head to the taller girl. Jessica took hold of her shaking hand, gently speaking to her, forcing her to look away from the witch. "Calm down. Just breath. Deep, slow breathes." She did what she was told, taking a few slow, shaky breathes to calm her nerves. "There you go. Listen, I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, okay? Once I finish this witch off, we can head back to the school_." _

Mion gave a nod. "Uh-huh."

Letting go of her hand, Jessica turned to do her duty and kill the witch. "It's going to be okay."

"B-b-but that t-thing, it's-it's-."

"Frightening," Jessica said, turning her head to her. "I know. Witches are terrible creatures, but it is my job as a magical girl to kill them." The dark skinned girl patted Mion on the shoulder, smiling. "And, hey, you're doing much better then I did when I first saw a witch. That's something to be proud of; So just chill right here for a minute."

"W-wait!" Jessica dashed off at full speed, heading right at the monstrous thing she had called a witch. The shy girl couldn't help but feel scared, and tried to keep herself from panicking again. "D-don't leave m-me alone."

_**XxxxX**_

Jessica skid to a stop just a few meters from the witch's familiar tower. She rolled her neck and cracked her knuckles, a black static charge sparking between her palm and fists.

With the tower being built from familiars, there was no way she could jump at the witch, without knowing how the thing would react. _Even if this witch is weaker than the original, I can't get cocky. _She thought to herself, looking up at the witch on the very top. _It's times like this I wish I had long range attacks._

The witch lifted an arm, and pointed a thin finger down at her. At that same moment, the front of the tower began to raise up like a gate, the inside being too dark to see anything, but Jessica could hear the loud foot falls, as rows of familiars came marching out, each holding a weapon.

Jessica dropped into a stance, her back leg bent, foot planted on the ground, and her right right foot balanced on the balls of her foot. hands at chin level, one rotating in front of the other. Her heart sped up a bit, both out of fear and excitement.

A loud screech came from the witch, and all the first row familiars went from marching to charging, quickly closing the distance.

_Rushing right in, huh. _She mused, as the first one in the front row thrust a pitch fork at her. _Alright then. _Just before the spear reached her breast plate, Jessica slid her back foot and side step it, the back of her hand sliding along the handle, before she took hold of it and kicked her foot out, caving in the familiar's mask.

She pulled weapon free from it's grasp, and spun it around, plunging it into the chest of another one. Then, duck under a wide sword slash from the right, that came down a moment later, causing her to step in and stop it by grabbing the familiar's sword hand and breaking it's knee backward with a kick, angling the sword so that the blade jammed into it's neck.

One by one the familiars attacked from all directions, only to have there strikes redirected at themselves or each other. Jessica constantly turned her feet, arms and hands moving in many fluid forms and motions. A knife coming inches from stabbing her in the eye, she saw it at just the right moment, and leaned her head to the side, grabbing the familiar by the arm in a crushing grip, striking it in the face, then bringing her elbow up, breaking it's arm at the joint, before taking and plunging the knife right under it's chin.

The last familiar fell to a kick to the back of the knee and a snapping of the neck, causing it to disappear like all the others.

Jessica took a breath, turning just as the rest of the familiars came rushing at her. She grinned, her body warmed up and jumping with energy, black static crackling over her body. "Looks like it's my turn!" The tall teenager took two steps, before jumping off at the group, and spin kicking the lead familiar's head off as she past by.

The second she landed, the assault began. A magic glow formed over her left arm and right hip, bringing her weapons of choice into existence: a sliver short sword with a green hilt, and a white shield with three green live running down it's middle.

She flew at the first familiar in range, using her shield to block it's weapon, and spun, unsheathing her sword, and slashed off it's head in one swift motion. Armies began to charge out of the tower, ganging up on the magical girl with wild attacks like beasts. For every familiar she killed, two seemed to take it's place; in the midst of hopping back, coming too close to taking a huge axe to the skull for comfort, Jessica was caught off guard when a fireball suddenly exploded near her, sending her and whatever familiars caught in the blast flying.

The tall girl grunted as she flew into a toy car, the door denting inward. _The hell …? _She shook herself out of a daze, just in time to see two even larger fireballs flying at her. She hopped up, her sword crackling black, before slashing her weapon to the side and raising her shield, a split second before the blast hit.

_**XxxxX**_

The explosion was deafening, and black smoke rose up from the spot where Jessica had crashed into. Mion couldn't hold back her gasp, fearing for the taller girl's well being. Things looked like they were going well, until the witch at the top of the tower joined in, a fireball still floating over it's thin, outstretched hand.

_Oh, no ...I hope she's alright. _Mion thought. One of her true worries was that if Jessica got hurt badly, she'd be left at the mercy of the witch. _What should I do? _

A few moments later, a sharp blade slashed it's way out of thin air and Jessica came tumbling out of the jagged portal it left, smoke steaming off different parts of her body, a large scorch mark on her shield. The portal stayed open for a few seconds, then sealed itself shut. Jessica laid on her back, and groaned as she sat up, her right arm covered in severe burns.

"God damn it, that hurt," she uttered, getting to a knee.

"_Ano ..._A-are you o-okay?" Mion asked, meekly, her eyes wide at the extant of the girl's injuries.

Jessica gave a nod. "Yeah. This doesn't hurt as much as you think." She stood up, black static crackling around her body as a glowing green circle appeared under her. Her wounds beginning to close, leaving not even a scar, as if she hadn't been injured a few moments ago. "I am severely pissed, though. I'll give her props for catching me off guard, however," the static around the dark skinned girl intensified, causing her hair to become wild and frazzled. "She chose the wrong girl to tick off!"

Then she was off, flying at the monsters, the light around her crackling.

_**XxxxX**_

The speed at which Jessica launched herself back into the fight brought up dust and debris. She slashed and kicked her way through any familiar in her way, then she suddenly stabbed her sword into the ground, a glowing circle appearing around her.

"Shock wave!" A wave of lightening traveled out of the circle, stunning every familiar within a twelve meter range. Of course, Jessica was no longer focused on them anymore, now her attention was completely on taking out the witch. She starred up at the creature of despair and shot off, flying up the side of the tower.

Multiple windows opened up on the towers side, before cannonball after cannonball was sent flying her way. She just barely had time to dodge.

Once at the top, she came face to face with the witch. It was much bigger compared to her, but smaller than some of the other witches she had fought. Jessica wasted no time going for a killing blow, spinning herself to decapitate the witch with a sideways slash, only for her sword to strike nothing.

The witched had leaned her body back to avoid the attack, and lashed out one of her boney legs, catching the magical girl in the back with a strong kick, sending her flying toward the other end of the tower roof.

Jessica used magic to reposition herself, stabbing her sword into the ground before she could reach the edge of the roof. _Well, so much for that plan. _She thought, panting. Her eyes remained on the witch as it turned to her, floating a few inches, toes just shy of touching the ground.

Reaching up at the girl, the witch's fingers shot forward like black bladed whips. Jessica raised her shield and sword just in time to prevent her midsection from getting impaled, and began blocking and parrying the high speed attack. The black blurs she couldn't quite get chipping at her armor and shin guards.

_Damn it, I can't keep this up forever! _The dark skinned girl used her shield to knock two of the whips back, and her sword to diagonally parry another. A blade blur past, cutting into her upper arm, and her side, just below her armor.

She needed to find an opening, but the witch wasn't giving her one to exploit. It just sent barrage after barrage of attacks, and they didn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon. _Fuck it, if I'm gonna do this, it has to be now! _Jessica grunted as three black blade rammed into her shield, causing her to stumble back a bit. The second she saw the next attacks coming she dropped her sword to the ground and turned, using her shield to knock the whips toward the ground, before reaching out and grabbing one tightly. "Shock wave!"

Black static ran from up the whip from her hand, giving the witch a high voltage shock, her body convulsing as she let out a horrid screech that hurt the magical girl's ears. Jessica grimaced and sped forward, clearing the distance between her and the witch in just a few seconds. She jumped up and slammed her elbow into the witch's nose, then grabbed her by the back of the head, sending one continuous jolt through the creature, as she drove her knee up into the witches face.

"This is what happens when you piss me off," Jessica drove one knee after the other into the witches face, repeatedly. The labyrinth beginning to crack and fall apart like glass, bit of the sky breaking apart. Then, she suddenly let her right hand drop, before sending her right elbow down and her right knee up, crashing into the witch's skull simultaneously. "Just die, already!"

Jessica kicked off the witch, and flew back, descending toward the ground as the tower and everything around it began to crumble. Swaying for a moment, the witch fell before evaporating into nothing but dust, in it's place, a small black jewel: a grief seed. Jessica snagged it; the labyrinth fading, leaving her in the middle of the park where she had entered.

"Well, that witch was one tough cookie." The taller girl said. She turned, seeing Mion sitting on the grass a few feet away. "Osaka-san, you doing alright?"

Mion gave a nod. "U-uh-huh."

"Good. Now then," Jessica transformed back into her normal attire, as her soul gem appeared in her hand. She brought the egg shaped jewel up to eye level, seeing how dull and blackened it was, then clicked her teeth. "Tsk, that took up way more magic then it should have. Good thing I have this." She held her soul gem up to the grief seed, the blackness being taken and absorbed, leaving her gem with it's pure greenish glow. "Ah~ much better, and the seed is still good for one more use." _Totally worth the effort._

_**XxxxX**_

Mion sat quietly, watching as the girl put the black thing in her uniform pocket, the gem in her hand glowing and becoming a bracelet. Her mind still needed time to catch up with what had happened, to convince herself that it all wasn't some type of weird dream. _Maybe I should talk to Akio-sensei about this._ She thought. _But, they might not even believe me. I wouldn't even believe me. _

Her stomach grumbled loudly, suddenly, all the excitement having made her forget about lunch. _Lunch is gonna be ending soon, and I didn't even eat anything. _She groaned. _This is so unfair._

"Sorry, about what happened, Osaka-san."

"Huh?" Mion looked up, surprised. The taller girl starring down at her. "I-it's not y-your fault. If you h-hadn't saved me, I-I won't even be her r-right now." The violet haired girl stood up, and meekly bowed. "_S-s-sumimasen. _I-I'm always c-causing a lot of t-trouble for others, e-even when I t-try not to."

"What are you apologizing for?"

"B-because, it was my fault. For l-letting that monster do, whatever it did to me. I-I-I went chasing after the voice. I was just being d-dumb, like a-always."

"Osaka-san, there's no need to say things like that." Jessica walked over to the girl, forcing her to stand straight up by holding her shoulders. "If anyone should be sorry, it's me. I got too comfortable, and let my guard down, that's why this happened. It had nothing to do with you."

"B-b-but-."

"'But' nothing, anyone can fall pray to a witch. They seek out the weakness in your heart and use it against you. All it takes is a moment of weakness. So there's no need to take the blame." Jessica said, letting go of Mion's shoulders. "I've heard about you from the other girls in class," the shy girl's expression saddened after hearing that. "They say you're weird and whatever; but from what I've seen, you seem like a really chill girl. Maybe even someone I can hangout with."

"H-hangout."

"Yeah."

"S-so, y-you want to be friends ...w-with someone like m-me?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," Jessica replied. "If you want to."

Mion smiled up at her. "I-I'd like that." _A friend ...I finally have a friend! _Her stomach rumble again. _...I'm starving._

"How about we hurry to the store," the taller girl suggested. "We have at least ten minutes before lunch ends. If we run, we should be able to eat on the way back." Jessica turned and started jogging towards the path, before Mion even had a chance to say anything.

"_M-matte!_" The shy girl followed after her, not being able to keep up very well since running wasn't her strong suit. Jessica hopped over the bushes, and Mion tried to do the same, only for her foot to get snagged on something, sending her tumbling through the bush, landing knees first on the path. "_Itai_!"

"Oh shit! Uh ...are you okay?"

"U-uh-huh."

"Here, let me help you up."

Jessica helped up the shy girl, and sucked air in through her teeth when she saw the bloody state of her knees. "Damn, girl. You call that 'okay'?"

Mion shifted her weight nervously, looking down at her knees. "I-it's fine, r-r-really. I'm u-used to it." She uttered. "I fall all the t-time."

"Even so, we need to get that clean and stuff. I'll get some bandages at the store."

"Y-you don't h-have to."

"Your right. I don't, but I'm going to. Beside, what kind of friend would I be to let you walk around like that." Jessica said, sighing, taking Mion by the wrist. "We'll walk from now on. If we end up being late, I'll just say we ran into some ...uh, minor differences or something."

As they began walking again, Mion couldn't help but feel happy, even though her knees burned. Sure, she had fallen again and hurt herself, but instead of getting talked about like with the other girls during gym. Jessica was helping her. _So, this is what it's like to be friends with someone._

"T-thank you."

"No problem. Just be more careful next time."

* * *

God, I went way past my word limit!

It took me a good week to finish this up, mostly because I wanted to figure out what Jessica's magical girl outfit was going to look like. She not the type of girl who likes frilly skirts and dresses a lot, so I thought I'd try something outside of what most magical girls wear, then came the witch fight and the witch design itself. All in all, I think I did a pretty good job.

Anyway, if you see any problems, let me know, and feedback helps, too.

The next chapter will be out soon~!

Peace!


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